Stories + solutions for a changing world.
Nonprofit news outlet investigating factory farms and their effect on climate, animals, health, politics and more.
When Donald Trump falsely claimed immigrants in Springfield, Ohio were eating pets, his statement was quickly debunked. So why did the idea continue to hold the public’s attention?
Sentient’s
@JessLReid
explains the history of racism and speciesism behind these claims.
BREAKING: Actress Rooney Mara joins
@AnimalEquality
in investigating horrific abuse inside factory farms.
“Nothing prepares you for looking into the eyes of a mother pig whose life is to be impregnated and left in a cage until she’s slaughtered,"—Mara 💔
Debunked:
@GeorgeMonbiot
exposes
@rustyrockets
' far-right farming conspiracy theories:
Investigative journalist and
@guardian
columnist explains what’s actually behind the
#DutchFarmer
protests as part of Sentient Media original series The Correction:
Soy is one of the most well-known sources of
#PlantBased
protein.
While many people enjoy dishes made from
#soy
, others are concerned about soy’s environmental and health impacts.
Today, we are taking a close look at the impacts of soy and the many myths that surround it.👇 1/8
"Veganism offers an opportunity to disrupt colonial logic by challenging the most basic building blocks of colonialism, which reduce all life forms to mere objects for capitalist exploitation," Samah Seger writes as part of our Indigenous Voices series:
The myth about animal protein and the human “need” to consume it has been perpetuated for years. While protein is an important part of a balanced diet, it is something that vegans and vegetarians are able to get from plants:
The Netherlands is one of the only countries committed to scaling down its livestock sector.
The decision is motivated by a severe pollution crisis but far-right influencers have latched onto this issue, spreading misinformation.👇
#stikstofcrisis
1/11
@60Minutes
The meat industry targets vulnerable groups because it is chronically understaffed.
Most meat workers working in slaughterhouses are Black Brown Indigenous People of Color and immigrants. The sector also benefits from cheap prison labor.
This week,
@SarahHuckabee
supported a law that ends one of Arkansas' only oversight mechanisms for child labor.
Here's why labor laws are crucial to protect vulnerable groups from being targeted by a sector, which is chronically understaffed: the meat industry.👇 1/10
There is a common link between many past and present diseases: humans' consumption of
#animals
. Can we reform the current food system without expecting the world to go
#PlantBased
?
Sentient Media's co-founder
@GrantLingel
explores the future of food:
@WeAnimals
@IowaStateU
@FarmBureau
@NPPC
@PNASNews
@tehwritedude
Pigs are considered the fifth most intelligent animal on Earth and can outperform three-year-old children on cognition tests.
Nonetheless, pork producers continue to crowd pigs into factory farms by the millions to maximize profits. 10/11
"We found widespread agreement on two points — that fish are sentient and that they are harmed in the capture process."
@SteveMcCVet
of
@_UoW
and John Garratt explore:
There is a massive movement, backed by billions of dollars, to keep animal meat on our tables and plant-based meat back in the fads of the pandemic. By
@JessLReid
in
@Truthdig
:
In 2019, our articles were viewed over 9.3 MILLION times on Google, over 135k people viewed Animal Matters, our new web series ft.
@ggreenwald
, & our online community grew by over 7k!
We couldn't have done it without you. See what else we've been up to 👇
The
@USSupremeCourt
's much-awaited decision on California’s Proposition 12, or Prop 12, law came this morning.
The Court upheld the rights of California to require pork sold in the state to meet certain animal welfare requirements. 👇1/9
Analysis of EU and US shows livestock farmers receive about 1,000 times more public funding than plant-based and cultivated meat.
@dpcarrington
reports for
@guardian
:
The
@nytimes
published a piece titled ���The End of Meat Is Here,” but within 24 hours the featured image was updated from
#animal
carcasses to a more palatable illustration.
Why does mainstream media keep the reality of our
#food
system so hidden?
One popular defense of a meat-heavy diet is the “crop death” argument, but does the evidence actually stack up?
Sentient’s
@JessLReid
decodes the argument.
Pork is the third most popular meat in the U.S. and in 2020, Americans consumed 52.1 pounds of
#pork
per capita.
But did you know that more than 98% of farmed
#pigs
in the U.S. are raised on factory farms—in just a handful of states? Learn more 👇
Often called Navajo, the Diné people were best known for herding sheep. Yet this Indigenous tribe originally ate a plant-rich diet of crops like beans, corn and squash.
@TheRealYarow
explores:
Just how often does climate media mention animal agriculture?
@Sentient_Media
and
@faunalytics
set out to answer that question and found it to be a shockingly small number – just 7 percent.
Read the analysis here:
There is a common link between many past
#pandemics
and the one we are facing today: the human consumption of
#animals
.
Can we change the current food system without changing habits and minds?
Did you know that this week marks
#EndangeredSpeciesDay
and
#BiodiversityDay
?
We honor these days by highlighting the need to change our eating habits and fashion choices to protect animals from going extinct.👇1/10
Many of the deadliest
#viruses
in modern history have been the result of humans’ exploitation of animals. The current zoonotic
#coronavirus
is no exception.
Writing Fellow
@ShadClark
explores the best defense against future pandemics.
BREAKING: Footage from
@AnimalsAus
and
@MercyForAnimals
reveals shocking cruelty within live exports from Brazil to the Middle East.
Cows are treated like inanimate objects and slaughtered in horrific ways. 💔
RT if you agree it's time to
#BanLiveExport
!
@ChuckGrassley
Sows kept in gestation crates have no room to turn around.
Prop 12, which was supported by 63% of California voters, ensures that they have at least 24 square feet during pregnancy:
Prop 12 will impact how pregnant sows, who can have up to three litters in a year, are confined during pregnancies.
In gestation crates, where sows are confined for 112-115 days during each pregnancy, are typically 14-16 square feet with no room to turn around. 5/9
@neiltyson
Hi Neil,
#chicken
farming in the US may be considered "efficient," but it has devastating effects on:
- animals
- workers
- planetary health
- global health
Please check out our reporting to learn why we urge people to choose
#PlantBased
alternatives.
Today is
#NationalChickenWingDay
, one of many US holidays celebrating animal-based products.
We honor this day by exploring the health, environmental, and ethical impacts of
#poultry
farming and celebrating plant-based chicken for providing an animal-free alternative. 1/12
Beef is one of the most destructive foods that humans consume. For every pound of hamburger meat you consume, 60 pounds of greenhouse gasses are emitted into the atmosphere:
This week, several outlets reported on hundreds of “world scientists” highlighting the importance of meat eating.
A closer look reveals that most signees have ties to the livestock sector and come from countries in the Global North.👇 1/13
📓Spreadsheet:
This week marks Ramadan, Passover and Easter. All three holidays impact millions of farmed animals around the world.
Today, we are taking a close look at sheep, a species traditionally slaughtered during religious festivities, and the industry that raises them.👇1/10
The media often frames plant-based leather as an unsustainable alternative to leather derived from animals.
@TheAtlantic
is the latest outlet portraying products made from conventional leather as the preferable option without telling the full story. 👇 1/10
Cattle farming is often romanticized as something essential and even empowering but the facts show that the practice has an overwhelmingly detrimental impact on the environment:
BREAKING: The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld California’s right to block the sale of pork in the state unless producers abide by more humane regulations on the treatment of pregnant sows.
@scotusreporter
via
@washingtonpost
:
Meat production has many hidden costs ranging from
#animal
suffering and air pollution to zoonotic risks and worker issues.
As
#MentalHealthAwarenessMonth
is drawing to a close, we are taking a closer look at how animal agriculture impacts human mental health. 👇1/10
In a special edition of
#TheCorrection
,
@GeorgeMonbiot
- author,
@Guardian
columnist, environmental campaigner and prior investigative reporter for
@BBCNews
- debunks
@rustyrockets
viral video against the Dutch government’s law to reduce nitrate pollution in livestock farming.
@JayneReesBuxton
@BoudiccaFox
Hi Jayne, we are an outlet focused on the climate impact of animal agriculture.
Scientists agree that meat-eating fuels the
#ClimateCrisis
. The term
#PlantBased
appeared 50+ times in the latest IPCC report.
Please stop spreading this dangerous type of misinformation.
⚠️Disturbing footage⚠️
@ARMInvestigatio
uncovered the immense cruelty hiding within
@fairoaksfarms
- supplier of
@fairlife
products distributed by
@CocaColaCo
.
This is not a isolated incident. This kind of cruelty occurs around the world within industrialized
#dairy
farms. 💔🐮
A new report via
@Sentient_Media
and
@faunalytics
found that just 7% of climate media coverage mentions animal agriculture — making it one of the least-discussed causes of climate change in the media.
Let's take a closer look 👇 1/10
As
#COVID19
brings about food shortage fears, it's time to address a startling fact: over 80% of the world's soybean supply is fed to farmed animals, not humans.
Lorelei Plotczyk of
@TruthOrDrought
thinks it's time to reform our food system & reclaim soy.
A new study shows replacing half of the meat and milk we eat with plant-based alternatives would cut agricultural emissions by almost a third.
@maxmugrah
reports via
@grist
:
@JayneReesBuxton
@Telegraph
@BoudiccaFox
We have taken a close look at statements made in this article:
@FAO
's 14.5% estimate is not exaggerated. It undercounts methane emissions & excludes data points such as emissions caused by aquaculture and the opportunity costs of animal agriculture. 1/10
Harvard Law's new Animal Law & Policy Clinic filed a case against the USDA regarding the poor psychological wellbeing of nonhuman primates used in research. 🐵👏
A recent ad featuring Aubrey Plaza portrayed consumers of plant-based milks as gullible, out-of-touch elites.
Funded by
@gonnaneedmilk
, the ad is part of a long tradition of the dairy industry promoting milk in the face of public distrust and falling demand.👇 1/16
With
#COVID19
closures impacting meat and dairy supply chains, the industry faces a crisis: stay open and risk the lives of its employees, or shut down and force
#farmers
to cull millions of
#animals
.
@JessLReid
reports:
The most comprehensive analysis to date finds plant diets lead to 75% less climate-heating emissions, water pollution and land use than meat-rich ones.
@dpcarrington
reports for
@guardian
:
Feeding palm oil to dairy cows barely scratches the surface of the issues hidden within the modern
#dairy
industry.
As
#ButterGate
trends,
@natblant
explores the many reasons why they stopped consuming dairy:
Science has shown that
#fish
feel pain and do what they can to avoid it, but humans continue to kill upwards of one trillion aquatic animals each year.
@JessLReid
reports on
#WorldOceansDay
:
July 12 marks
#CowAppreciationDay
.
To honor this day, we raise awareness of cow sentience and celebrate
#PlantBased
milks for providing a compassionate alternative to cows’ milk. 1/7
The ‘grind’ is a style of hunting that involves herding
#dolphins
into bays where they become beached on the shore.
@lexrigby
explores how the UK could stand up against
#dolphin
hunting by suspending a controversial trade agreement with the Faroe Islands:
Breaking Investigation: Decades of welfare violations at the National Primate Research Centers, funded by
#taxpayer
money, lead many in the scientific community to question experimenting on
#animals
.
Read the whole story:
A new investigation from
@AnimalOutlook
documents what happens when
#animals
are held in transport trucks for hours on end with no rest.
Scott David reports on the reality of
#LiveTransport
:
"People are hesitant to go
#vegan
because of habits, uncertainty, and a lack of a social support system. Fortunately, these are changing rapidly."
@sarahjbrowne
interviewed
#SocialMedia
influencer
@JohnOberg
about how to go viral as an
#animal
advocate.
“We have a personal responsibility to take action right now.”
Joaquin Phoenix stood in solidarity with
@AnimalEquality
co-founders
@Sharon_IA
and
@Jose_Valle
urging people to address their current eating habits for the planet, the animals, and our future.
"These companies keep their practices under wraps because they know that the public would be horrified if they knew the ugly truth."
Former undercover investigator Scott David of
@AnimalOutlook
reports on the danger of ag-gag laws in
#animal
agriculture:
"The far-right has always championed farmers," Monbiot explains.
"As with the current situation in the Netherlands, some farmers have happily embraced that and have joined forces, quite explicitly, with the white supremacists and fascists who claim to be defending [them]." 10/11
This week, a
@Nature
study found that methane emissions from agricultural ponds are underestimated in national GHG inventories.
Here’s what you need to know about the environmental impacts of ponds associated with animal agriculture.👇 1/11
Since 1990, a Kansas state law—one of the first-ever ag-gag laws—made it illegal to capture photos or videos inside a factory farm or slaughterhouse.
A recent ruling deemed this law unconstitutional, making KS the 4th state to nullify its ag-gag law. 🙌
Why do we encourage children to love and respect animals while simultaneously feeding them burgers, nuggets, and bacon made from animals abused on factory farms?
If we truly want them to respect animals, that should mean ALL animals. 🐮🐥🐷
Photojournalist Jo-Anne McArthur and filmmaker Kelly Guerin of
@WeAnimals
have documented some of Asia's
#WetMarkets
in a way not many people have seen before.
Take a look at the images often neglected in
#COVID19
coverage.
Billions of animals are being abused and killed within secretive industries around the globe.
That’s why
@TheHumaneLeague
&
@Sentient_Media
are partnering to give you the opportunity to tell their stories and change the world for animals.
Learn more:
The
#Februdairy
campaign promotes dairy farming but ignores the consequences of modern farming practices—like commercial dairy cows' reduced lifespans.
Choose one of our February desktop calendar wallpapers to shed light on the experience of the world's 250+ million
#dairy
cows.
Certain species are labeled "invaders" or "pests" while simply trying to survive, often in an environment overrun by human-made infrastructure.
@jeffrsebo
&
@mbolotnikova
discuss harmful invasive species rhetoric and the beliefs that fuel it.
At Sentient Media, we report on an industry that touches all our lives yet operates in secrecy: factory farming.
On
#WorldPressFreedomDay
, we call on governments to lift
#AgGag
laws and share 13 findings we could only report thanks to the help of undercover investigators.👇1/17
Marketed to consumers as “sustainable,” this “climate-beneficial” wool is polluting the land and killing wildlife.
@Unpop_Science
and Emma Håkansson of
@Co_Fash_Justice
report:
We applaud
@VLandMovement
for acquiring their largest parcel of
#grazing
land so far.
Research indicates that giving land back to nature is better for
#biodiversity
than models that aim to make agricultural land more wildlife-friendly.
@HamlettClaire
:
NEWS FLASH 💥
#DairyLandBuyout4
#VeganLandMovementCIC
has just taken 10 acres from dairy farming
We have been working behind the scenes since losing the last auction
This is the 4th & biggest parcel of land removed so far & will be given back to the earth & endangered species
BREAKING: A new ruling by the Dutch government will close all
#mink
farms in the Netherlands by March 2021 in response to burgeoning coronavirus cases.
Meat producers crowd thousands of stressed
#animals
into unsanitary spaces, drastically reducing their immunity and making them more vulnerable to diseases.
Devatha P. Nair reports on the difficulty of preventing
#disease
outbreaks on
#FactoryFarms
:
A record-breaking 12,000 activists flooded the streets of London this past weekend to rally against industries that exploit animals, contribute to climate change, and fuel mass extinction. ✊🐮
Sentient Media is dedicated to reporting on
#AnimalRights
and environmental news, which is why we're expanding to a country heavily impacted by animal agriculture & deforestation: Brazil. 🇧🇷
Join us in bringing these issues to the forefront of the news.
A new generation of animal welfare activists argue that U.S. state bystander laws give them the right to save animals in distress—including those in factory farms.
@rfobar
reports for
@natgeo
:
Some believe the term
#organic
is synonymous with "cruelty-free" but a groundbreaking investigation by
@ARMInvestigatio
proves otherwise.
In 2019, the team documented extreme mistreatment and neglect inside an "organic" dairy farm,
@npdfarms
.
The meat industry might want to downplay the connection between animal agriculture and climate change, but we have the studies that show the connection is undeniable:
How often does climate media mention animal agriculture vs. other issues? To find out
@sentient_media
and
@faunalytics
reviewed the 1000 most recent climate articles (as of September 2022) published by 10 national outlets, including the
@nytimes
and
@WSJ
.
In Iowa,
#AnimalRights
activists are being hunted like criminals, but that doesn't stop them from bringing the crimes within animal agriculture to light.
Look inside the industry in the latest short film from
@theintercept
. 👇
This week, people have been discussing if eating
#oysters
conflicts with following a plant-based diet.
Today, we’re taking a look at the definition of sentience and
#veganism
—and at animal species that have been proven to be more sentient than humans used to think. 👇1/14
This year,
#NationalMilkDay
takes place on January 11.
Did you know that the dairy industry sells male calves for slaughter to the
#veal
industry because they cannot produce
#milk
?
Choose one of our January desktop calendar wallpapers to raise awareness about
#dairy
production:
April 24 marks World Day for Laboratory Animals, a day commemorating the hundreds of millions of animals spending their lives in research facilities.
Check out
@WeAnimals
image selection to learn more about the hidden world of animal research.👇
Recent headlines have declared that scientists are changing their tune regarding the benefits of eating fewer animal products.
The basis for such claims: a strident manifesto by Big Ag that goes against decades of research & expertise.
This week,
@SarahHuckabee
supported a law that ends one of Arkansas' only oversight mechanisms for child labor.
Here's why labor laws are crucial to protect vulnerable groups from being targeted by a sector, which is chronically understaffed: the meat industry.👇 1/10
Watch as investigative journalist and
@guardian
columnist
@GeorgeMonbiot
explores the nitrate crisis in The Netherlands, Dutch farmer protests and far-right conspiracy theories being spread by Russell Brand and other influencers:
"For just about every
#animal
species besides Homo sapiens, today is probably the worst period in time to be alive, "
@KennyTorrella
reports via
@voxdotcom
:
The US beef industry is creating an army of influencers & activists to help amplify a message that will be key to its future success: don't be too worried about the growing attention around meat's environmental impacts.
@joefassler
reports via
@guardian
:
How can we overcome the underreporting of meat’s role in climate change?
@nico_muzi
in
@euronews
writes: "audacious investigative journalists should dig deeper and unearth new episodes of corporate capture of science and policymaking."